More On the Way

November 28th the Law family posted on their blog. Rob's professional card was approved. This means they can travel to Belgium on a work visa. This is great news. It is awesome that multiple families can go to Belgium in many different ways; all plugging in to society, and get synergy with helping the church. This is great news. Please excuse the brevity. This was typed on my phone. We have some updates to provide soon. Stay tuned.

Waiting Here For You!

Well it is September and the weather is getting cooler and we are loving the feeling that Fall is on its way. We have had a wonderful HOT summer, but definitely glad to see the changes that Fall will bring. As I sit here and type Bryanna is playing with Play-Doh across the table and Jackson is in his high chair finger painting and we have worship music lightly playing in the background. We are currently living in a missionary house in the Nashville area. We for sure thought we would be in Belgium by now. This journey for us started in May 2009 so who knew it would be over 3 years and we would still be in the States. God knew!! We are at peace with where we are at, at this very moment. God continues to provide financially, provide us a temporary home, provide the support and prayers of family, friends, and our church. He continues on a daily basis to reassure us that we are exactly where he wants us to be for now, but we still feel such a burden in our hearts for Belgium. We have not been released of the ministry he has called us to there. We know we are moving and until he moves us we will be waiting here being as involved as we can be right where he has us planted at this moment. We have hit a couple of speed bumps this summer, but God has confirmed that they were not road blocks they were actually just a way of showing his timing and granting us some extra time with loved ones here in the States. In the meantime our partners in this ministry have continued to stand with us. By them continuing to give and pray for the mission it will have us exactly where we need to be when we are actually sent. Our Church has agreed to us starting the Visa process, now we are drawing ourselves closer to our Father waiting on the green light that only he can give. I am so grateful for the last 3 years of my life and how they have changed me and molded me. They have been FULL of transition, but we are embracing the change and learning to be at peace wherever HE may take us. We have learned to live with little and be content. We have learned what is really important in this life. We are only on Earth for a fleeting moment. We should be focused on his will for our lives and doing our best to live that out everyday. Eternity is what matters. Do you know where you are spending eternity? I am happy to say that the Church plant in Belgium is going well. Our teammates who are already there are doing an amazing job. They are now having weekly services. We are so thrilled to hear of the progress and the way God is working there. Our kids are doing so well! I cannot believe I am Mom to a 3 year old and a 1.5 year old. They continually bring me to my knees. They are both so smart. As God continues to reveal different parts of my life it makes me more thankful everyday that he is in control. Bryanna is now potty trained, she knows all of her colors, shapes, can count to 20, ABCs, and we are beginning to learn how to write her name, and learning to recognize all letters by site, she can do flips, she can skip, and can almost do the splits. Her favorite shows are Strawberry Shortcake, Mickey Mouse, and Barney. We are considering gymnastics for her. Jackson is learning his ABCs, he can count to 3 but we are working on getting to 10, he is learning site words and colors. He can run, hop, and climb up and downstairs. He is so FAST!! His favorite things are trucks, trains, and anything that rolls. He loves Thomas the Train, Mickey Mouse, Yo Gabba Gabba, and Bo on the Go. Bryanna is now in a new class at Church and she gets to take her Bible every Sunday and they have started bringing an offering. She loves that she is a big girl now. They are teaching us so much everyday, but one of the most profound things we have learned by being parents is understanding and realizing the love God has for us as his children.

Here are a few updated family photos. Thank you for continuing to follow our journey. We are no where near perfect, we are not special, we are normal everyday people trying our best to live each day for HIM. We so appreciate all of the love, support, prayers, and compassion shown to our family. "And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." (Colossians 1:9-14 ESV)

January and February 2012

So the last couple of months have been filled with lots of things! I really dislike getting so behind on the blog, but we were moving and were without internet for a while.

January 2012 started off great! We had lots of quality time with family during the holidays and we loved every second. It is always refreshing to get home and settled in. We were gone for a couple of weeks so I had LOADS of laundry to catch up. I also decided it was time to SHED another layer for Belgium. It is a new year and the kids have outgrown clothes and toys so it was time to donate some things. The grandparents love to spoil our children so we needed to make room for new toys and narrow down to the toys we will actually bring with us. We plan to dedicate one luggage bag to toys when we move. We want them to be comfortable since it will be a big adjustment and they are still very young. We have also been told toys are expensive in Belgium.

January 18th Jackson turned 1 year old! What a blessing he has been to each of us in the past year. God is so good. We are so thankful for his little life. He is now able to walk/run, climb up and down the stairs, he says Momma, Da Da, Bre or Bry Bry, Bye Bye, No No, Cookie, bubble and several more. He is becoming our little mockingbird. He nods his head Yes and No. LOVES to dance and giggle and turn in circles. He really likes Thomas the Train, Yo Gabba Gabba, Mickey Mouse, and Little Einsteins. He enjoys knocking down the houses and castles his sister makes with the blocks. They are definitely developing the "sibling" relationship which is precious MOST of the time. :) Below are some pictures from his Mickey Mouse Clubhouse birthday party.




He has changed so much since we brought him home from the hospital


After his birthday it was not long and he got pretty sick for a couple of weeks. He had a stomach bug followed up with pneumonia. We spent one scary evening in the ER. It was his first ER trip. We are so thankful God carried us through that. It was tough seeing him so miserable and the sleep deprivation begins to get to you after a little while. So glad he is back to normal. He had to take lots of breathing treatments, steroids, and antibiotics.



February 2012 we were so excited to be able to enjoy Romance and Roses that Lifepoint hosts each year. It is a night of Romance and fun with your spouse and friends. The food is always so yummy, music is great, and most importantly they help you remember what a Godly marriage looks like and work to hold us accountable to that. Below is a picture of part of our team that is still in the States! LOVE them dearly. It was such a fun night. Special thank you to my wonderful Aunt(Gigi) for watching the kiddos so we could have a night away.

We had originally planned or thought we would be leaving for Belgium in the spring of 2012. Our church has asked that we wait until Fall to actually depart. At first it sort of knocks the wind out of your sails a bit and then you realize who is in control. God is in complete control and as we have said throughout this whole process we trust his timing and we know his plan is perfect. We will be there on the exact day he has planned for us to arrive. We also trust our church leadership completely. They are wonderful to us. We also still need more funding before we can officially depart to Belgium so this gives us ample time to get all of our ducks in a row. If you are interested in becoming a monthly partner please contact us or the information is located on the right side of the blog at the top.

Since we received news that we would be in the States a little longer than planned we needed to come up with a game plan and try to figure out where we would live for the next 6 months or so. We needed a place where we did not have to sign a lease and preferably some place furnished since we have literally gotten rid of ALL of our furniture. God again opened the perfect door at the perfect time. We found out at the beginning of February that we were able to move into a completely furnished missionary house that was available in Murfreesboro, TN. We were so thankful for this provision. So we spent a couple of weeks getting settled in and got internet installed yesterday. The kids love it here and Tennessee weather has been beautiful so we have been getting out and walking and spending time at a Park that is nearby. Our teammates already in Belgium have said to walk as much as possible to prepare for life in Belgium since we will not have a vehicle there. We will depend solely on public transportation which is wonderful in Europe.





With every passing day we see God's fingerprints all over this whole process(which will be 3 years in May). We understand why we are still here and we know God is using this time to train us and prepare us for the time we will spend overseas. We have grown closer in our walk with HIM and feel a closeness to him that only comes from being totally reliant on him to guide us and provide for us. It is a closeness that I never want lose. While moving overseas may not be what he has called everyone to, I do urge you to really seek God and see what he has for your family. Saying YES to his plan can be a little bit uncomfortable at first, but once you start to see all of the ways he is working the peace you feel far surpasses those uncomfortable moments. I LOVE our savior so much. I would not trade one day of this journey. I am so thankful for a church that pushed us outside of our comfort zone to a place that is so much better.

Psalm 130:5-6
5 I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in his word I hope;
6 my soul waits for the Lord
more than watchmen for the morning,

He answered: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" Luke 10:27

11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
more than watchmen for the morning

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

I hope you all had a very wonderful time celebrating the birth of our savior. I know we did! So thankful for the birth of Jesus. We were fortunate enough to be able to spend a couple of weeks in West,TN. Bryan had to come back and work for a few days, but we(the kids and I) stayed in McKenzie. We are trying to get in as much time as we can with our family and friends. They are such a wonderful support system and were all very thoughtful to be sure gifts they purchased for our family were things we needed and could travel with to Belgium. We got lots of stuff like luggage, gift cards, carry on luggage for both kids, children's travel DVD players, and warm clothes. The best part of being in West, TN was not the gifts it was quality time with those who are dear to us. I know how fortunate and blessed we are and we are so thankful. Throughout this whole season those who had recently lost loved ones have been in our hearts and on our minds. There are so many lonely or starving people and it breaks my heart all year round, but particularly during the holidays. I pray that those who feel hopeless and alone know that their is hope and they are not alone. We have a savior who came to us in the form of a tiny baby and who died on the cross for our sins and he is waiting for us to let him in and he loves us more than anyone living on this earth possibly could. Christmas is my absolute favorite holiday and this year we had a great time celebrating with our two little ones and beginning to teach them that this season is not about Santa Clause it is about the birth of Jesus and celebrating HIM.



One of the highlights of all of our celebration was Christmas at Lifepoint. This year was terrific. Loved the music, painting, stories of waiting. Our family was featured as a story of waiting on God's timing. Click on the link to watch our adoption story.

The Wolski Story from Justin Crutchfield on Vimeo.

Bryan and I also celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary on December 30th. Bryan has been a blessing to me in so many ways. I am so glad God chose him to be my life partner. He is a wonder Daddy and spiritual leader for our family. I love the values he is teaching our children. Even on a day he is completely exhausted he will take time to get in the floor and play with our kids. He is so sweet to me and makes me laugh a lot. We celebrated with a steak dinner ALONE. :)

5 Years!!

He suprised me with beautiful flowers! Love him!!

We are on the fast track to Belgium now. Our list has been narrowed down to where the only thing that is holding us here is our funding. We are still needing monthly financial partners who are willing to join us in planting a church in Brussels, Belgium. Once we reach a certain level of our funding we can apply for our VISA!! I am finding there are so many things to do to prepare it is hard to stay focused on one thing for very long so I am going to have to really work on my time management throughout the rest of this process. We are planning to get our fingerprints and background checks done within the next couple of weeks. We are beginning to look at apartments online and we are still undecided as to whether we will get a furnished or unfurnished apartment. There are pros and cons to both and we know God will plant us in the right apartment and the right location.



We are also going to shed another layer or "stuff" this month. I have already gotten 1 full bag of just toys ready for Goodwill. When we moved from our condo we got rid of most of our big items and a ton of the smaller things, but as we have watched teammates move we are realizing we still have way more that we need to actually move with. I want to be sure we have clothing that is in good shape, warm clothes, some toys for the kids, and our sentimental items. Most other things can be purchased at a later time.


There are so many things to do to prepare, but we must not forget or neglect our day to day responsibilities. We need to be having a our quiet time with God everyday and drawing ourselves closer to him, we need to take care of our physical health, have family time, and care for those around us who are in need. Prayers are appreciated for us along with the two other families who are in the US with us that are moving to Belgium soon. We are all in the same boat. I am so thankful God is sending us as a team. Our teammates are awesome! I know I have said this in previous post, but it is a new year. I feel refreshed and ready to see what God has in store.

Happy New Year friends!!

Wolski kids have passports!!

We can officially leave the country as a family of 4! That excites me beyond belief. So thankful we have all of the documents now to begin our VISA application. It will be a little while before we can actually apply. We must reach a certain point in our funding before we can actually apply. We know God is in control of this so we aren't stressing. Just thankful to be to the place in the process we are at at this exact moment. Please continue to pray for the financial provisions we need in order to move and serve the people of Belgium. Hope you all have a blessed weekend!

Thanksgiving!

I originally wrote this post on Monday, but we had a pretty eventful week so I am just now posting. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

We are so thankful to be able to spend the holidays with family this year. I(Cassi) was able to take both kids down to West, TN a few days early so we were able to spend a full week with family. We split our time between my mom's house and Bryan's mom's. They are always great host and make us feel so comfortable. We are spending as much extra time as we can since we may not be there next year during the holidays.

We had three delicious dinners and Bryan was able to golf a couple of the days we were there(his Uncle owns the golf course). I went black Friday shopping and got the deals I wanted to get to save some extra money this year. We had lots of relax time. It was just what we needed.

As we ate each meal I couldn't help but think of all of the families here in the US and all over the world who probably were hoping for anything to eat or a family to share it with. I can honestly say that I have not had one Thanksgiving where I didn't have multiple meals with family and an abundance of food at each one. I am so very thankful for every blessing I have. God has truly blessed me. I want to reach others for his glory. I want to make a difference with what God has given me. I do not come from a wealthy family, but when you look at the big picture there are ways for all of us to dig in and help. We all have been blessed with individual talents and personalities and I am guilty of not using mine like I should. The scripture below has been on my mind a lot lately and as we all prepare for the Christmas season let us remember the true reason for the season, the birth of our Savior. Let's remember to love others like Jesus does. We should not overlook the opportunity to give of ourselves and help others It may not be easy or convenient and the timing may be horrible, but God doesn't promise us that following him will be a bed of roses. Loving others where they are at and encouraging them in a time of need is what it is all about. I know the Holidays are so very busy, but I challenge each of you to take time out and look at your surroundings and see if there is one life you can make a difference in this Christmas.

27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

Passports

We have officially ordered the kids passports! What a praise! As an adoptive parent I cannot express the excitement I feel inside to be able to go and get passports for my children. I know it probably sounds silly, but when you are fostering for a long time and there are restrictions on your travel it is a really nice feeling to be free and know that these are YOUR children. God has really blessed us in a HUGE way.

Now that we have their passports ordered we can start collecting documents for our VISA. I cannot believe we are finally to this phase. Two years into the process it is nice to know we are getting so much closer. It is hard to describe how you feel when you are in preparation/transition for so long. We aren't in our own home right now so it is a little different with the Holidays and how we would normally celebrate putting up the tree and opening up gifts. Also since we are working diligently to get moved we will have to cut back how we spend at Christmas time this year. Right now every holiday and family dinner is extra special because it may be the last one you attend for a while. Currently our entire family is sharing a Master bedroom and bathroom. It is very cramped! All that being said. This is another way God has provided for our family. We are happy and thankful to be here. It is helping us in a big way to get to where we are being led. I will not sugar coat it. I will be thankful to get settled into an apartment in Belgium that we can make our own again. With everything being so unsettled for the past two years I am so ready to get moved and dig in to the ministry there full force.

I have posted the kids passport pictures below. I must say I think they are pretty cute. :)

Provisions

Every single step of our journey to Belgium continues to blow me away. With every exciting moment or hardship along the way I have learned to lean on and praise God no matter the outcome. Times when I least expect it God shows up with a provision at just the right time. I know God is with me ALL of the time. I am never alone and I know that, but I am also thankful for those moments of weakness when God shows up in a big way!

Support raising can be a bit stressful for me, but also an exciting opportunity to partner with friends and family for a God driven mission. I read on a friends blog recently that "it is againt our nature to ask for support" and that really hit home with me. I was raised in a family where we are to be strong and independent and work hard for everything we have. That being said it is also biblical to partner with other believers to do the Lords work. Being a faithful servant is what we are so passionate about. We want desperately to share the gospel with those who have not been fortunate enough to grow up in an area where there are active growing churches on every corner. In Belgium there are many cathedrals, but they are all being used for tourism and some are even being turned into clubs or Mosques. When I stood in those breathtakingly beautiful cathedrals and saw where the wood was worn at the confessional booths it really broke my heart to know that all of those people turned from God at some point. You can tell that they use to be visited frequently and now they are empty and cold. I was so full of sadness I cannot put it into words. I knew long before that trip we were being called to Belgium, but at that moment I felt a new sense of urgency. We have to be willing to do whatever it takes to do what the Lord is leading us to do no matter what. Even if that means moving to a different country and raising support to work and plant a church in an area that needs to hear the love of Christ desperately. Since we have begun this process of support raising it has grown new friendships. We have felt love and support from others like never before. It truly is a partnership. We could not do this without those that God is choosing for us to partner with. We hope that those of you who partner with us through being part of our prayer team or financially supporting us will visit us once we move to Belgium. We would love for you to get your feet on the ground there and see what is going on first hand. We would also love to fellowship with you. We mean it! It is a team effort and we thank you.



"5 Dear friend, you are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. 6 They have told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God. 7 For they are traveling for the Lord,[a] and they accept nothing from people who are not believers.[b] 8 So we ourselves should support them so that we can be their partners as they teach the truth." 3 John 1:5-8

Is the Bible the Complete Word of God; Part II

This is a dangerous subject. Until my words are written clearly and the message is clearly conveyed, I am going to hold off on answering this question. I did attempt to answer it but I fear it was certainly inadequate for such a huge question. Give me time. If I feel I can do a better job than what was posted I will reengage the question.

Halloween

So we really debated on celebrating this holiday and we are still unsure if we will in the future. The kids had a blast and we had fun and fellowship with friends so I am glad we chose to this year. This was Bryanna and Jacksons first year to trick or treat. Bryanna was a princess and Jackson a football player. This holiday season is extra special because it will likely be our last in the States for the next few years. I am so thankful for our family and friends. God has truly blessed us with a support system out of this world! I hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween.

Trick or Treat

Jackson our little football player

The kids playing before hand

Bryanna our little princess